This invention relates to the cable management art and more particularly to a fiber optic splice cabinet which accommodates one or more relatively movable shelves accommodating splicing trays and prevents undesirable bending of the fiber cables when the shelves are moved relative to the cabinet.
In the telecommunications field, it is necessary to house and organize transmission cable connections in an efficient manner. Failure to efficiently manage fiber optic cable routing and splicing may result in excessive installation time and/or repair time and unnecessary additional system down time during repairs.
Of additional importance is the handling of fiber optic cable in an efficiently organized housing. Fiber optic cable is formed of glass fibers which transmit data in the form of light through the phenomena of internal reflection. In order for a fiber optic cable to efficiently transmit data, certain physical limitations are imposed on the cable material. Foremost, fiber optic cable has a limited range of bending and must be maintained above a minimum radius. If the radius is below the minimum required radius for the particular type of fiber optic cable it will impair transmission through the cable or even cause the cable to kink or snap, with attendant transmission loss.
Some prior art fiber cable management devices have attempted to overcome the physical limitations imposed on the housing and organization of fiber optic cables. For example, in one form of fiber cable management device fiber optic cables are securely tied, using cable ties, to discrete points throughout the cabinet. While such an arrangement may be designed to maintain the fiber optic cables above a minimum predetermined radius, it is difficult to successfully implement and maintain. For example, such an arrangement requires that when cables are to be removed or rerouted each connecting point must be opened and reattached to retain the remaining fiber optic cables.
Moreover, such an arrangement may be organized with branches which are routed to a rack portion or tray for splicing with other cables. The splicing area may be arranged to organize the cables using the least amount of space, thereby requiring the tray to be removed from the cabinet for installation, servicing or alteration of splices, and thereafter reinserted. When the tray is removed from or reinserted into the cabinet the cables, which are attached to the inside of the cabinet at discrete locations, may not provide sufficient play to maintain the minimum required radius. However, when additional slack is provided, the cables may tend to snag and obstruct access to and organization within the cabinet.
The splice device is typically arranged on some form of sliding shelf which may be extracted from or returned to the cabinet in a sliding manner. Slide rails may be employed to provide a friction reducing sliding support for the cable shelf. The slide rails are mounted to inside surfaces of the cabinet in which the shelves are positioned to provide sufficient support for the multiple cables and splicing device retained on the shelf. The slide rails can interfere with the cables which branch from a main cable group.